Headlines about "Medicare and Medicaid"
Gathered from the web by the editors at BenefitsLink.com.
[Guidance Overview] CMS Final Medicare Part D Regulations Affect Retiree Drug Subsidy (PDF)
3 pages. Excerpt: "CMS recently issued final regulations that make policy clarifications and technical corrections to its earlier final regulations on Medicare Part D. The regulations contain provisions affecting the retiree drug subsidy program, including clarification of rules regarding the timing of applications for the subsidy, submission of actuarial attestations upon a material change and changes to the rules for determining actuarial equivalence." (Buck Consultants)
Long-Term Care Insurance: Partnership Plans and the Impact of Other Legislation
Excerpt: "Why is true group long-term care so important? Many Americans will have no way to pay for long-term care services when they are needed. Insurance for long-term care will not become widespread if only available on an individual basis, which means that the change will need to come first from employers. Group coverage needs to include employer contributions to make it affordable to employees and vesting to make it affordable to employers." (Milliman)
[Opinion] The Age of Tinkering with the Framework of Entitlements Has Begun
Excerpt: "The age of guaranteed benefits is hardly over, but anxiety over the fraying of the safety net -- private as well as public -- is palpable. It is true that not one of the three White House contenders has offered a comprehensive solution. And except for Barack Obama's proposal that the wealthy pay more in payroll taxes, none have been so bold as to suggest that the government meet its entitlement obligations by raising its take on them. But each has suggested some intriguing fixes that, while differing in the details, all seek to alleviate the entitlement problem by stimulating individual savings." (The New York Times; free registration required)
States Look to Rein In Private Medicare Plans
Excerpt: "In the draft of a report prepared by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, state officials say they have received large numbers of complaints but, in most cases, cannot provide direct assistance to beneficiaries or hold insurers accountable. In the report, the state officials propose setting common standards for marketing the private plans, which could then be enforced by states that adopt them. 'The current federal regulatory framework does not adequately protect consumers from marketing and sales abuses,' and consumers are often left to fend for themselves in 'a bifurcated regulatory system,' the draft report says." (The New York Times; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] CMS Issues Medicare Part D Benefit Parameters for 2009
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: The new parameters will help group health plan sponsors determine whether their plans' prescription drug coverage is creditable for 2009. This information is needed for the disclosures that must be made annually and at other specified times to Part D eligible individuals and to CMS." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
[Guidance Overview] Side-by-Side Comparisons of Current and 'HIPAA 2' EDI Standards Posted on CMS Website
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Health plans are required to comply with the EDI standards that apply to all covered entities, as well as some additional requirements specific to health plans. Covered entities (including health plans) and their business associates may find the side-by-side comparisons helpful in assessing the potential impact of the HIPAA 2 changes." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
[Opinion] Social Security and Medicare Projections: 2008
Excerpt: "The 2008 Social Security and Medicare Trustees Reports show the combined unfunded liability of these two programs has reached $101.7 trillion in today's dollars! That is more than seven times the size of the U.S. economy and 10 times the size of the outstanding national debt. The unfunded liability is the difference between the benefits that have been promised to retirees and what will be collected in dedicated taxes and Medicare premiums." (National Center for Policy Analysis)
Study Warns Job Losses Will Strain Government Health Programs
Excerpt: "Leading health researchers projected Monday that each percentage-point rise in unemployment during the economic downturn would swell the uninsured by 1.1 million, stoking demand for government health coverage just as states face pressure to cut benefits." (The New York Times; free registration required)
[Opinion] Providing Health Care for All Shouldn't Make Insurers Rich
Excerpt: "Government subsidies and outsourcing may be good for business without always being good for the public. Medicare outsources the administration of its prescription drug program, Medicare D, to private insurers. Medicare Advantage -- Medicare C -- subsidizes managed care insurance plans for seniors choosing them. Several current presidential aspirants -- Clinton and Obama -- would subsidize the purchase of insurance for the low-income uninsured. Each of these plans offers private insurers protection against a less wasteful plan, one that does without private insurers." (Herald Times via Physicians for a National Health Program)
SSA's Annual Statistical Supplement, 2007
Printed copies of this document are scheduled for release in mid-May 2008. (U.S. Social Security Administration)
Ultimatum to City of Duluth Retirees: Sign up for Medicare or Lose Coverage
Excerpt: "Thirty-seven city of Duluth retirees are getting letters in the mail saying they need to sign up for Medicare or lose their retiree health-care benefits. All city retirees who are eligible must sign up for Medicare. Mayor Don Ness said the 37 who have not done so were discovered during a review of the retiree health-care program last year. Once the retirees sign up, he said, the city stands to save $400,000 to $600,000 a year." (Duluth News-Tribune via NewsEdge via Human Resource Executive Online)
'The American Prospect' Special Report Focuses on U.S. Health Care System
Excerpt: "The May 2008 issue of The American Prospect features a special report on health care issues in the U.S. [Issues covered include state reform efforts; medical debt; and Medicare.]" (Kaiser Family Foundation)
[Guidance Overview] CMS Releases 2009 Medicare Part D Benefit Parameters (PDF)
Excerpt: "The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has updated the Medicare Part D standard benefit parameters and the cost thresholds and limits for qualified retiree prescription drug plans for 2009." (Buck Consultants)
Medicare Part D Accounting Practice Note (PDF)
29 pages. Excerpt: "The purpose of this practice note is to assist actuaries involved in valuation, accounting, and financialreporting work relating to Medicare Part D products." (American Academy of Actuaries)
[Guidance Overview] CMS Announces Indexed Medicare Part D Amounts for 2009
Excerpt: "On April 7, 2008, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced the indexed Medicare Part D standard benefit and Retiree Drug Subsidy (RDS) amounts for 2009. This Capital Checkup features charts comparing the 2009 numbers and the 2008 numbers." (The Segal Group, Inc.)
CBO Chief Is Health Care Referee
Excerpt: "The CBO director, who started his four-year term in January 2007, is going beyond the traditional budget-Cassandra role, and analyzing causes and solutions. He has emphasized that the biggest driver of rising medical costs is the increasing use of new technology, not simply an aging population." (The Wall Street Journal)
Growing Disparities in Life Expectancy (PDF)
6 pages. Excerpt: "Increasing longevity, by itself, has clear implications for Social Security and Medicare expenditures. As beneficiaries live longer, they will receive benefits for a longer period, putting additional pressure on the programs' finances." (U.S. Congressional Budget Office)
Assessing the Impact of Coverage Gaps in the Medicare Part D Drug Benefit (PDF)
Excerpt: "This study illustrates how beneficiaries faced with the full cost of their prescriptions reduce their overall utilization, a phenomenon that may become more common with increasing out-of-pocket expenses. Over time it appears that the coverage gap may negatively affect those suffering from chronic conditions by exacerbating the hurdles they already face." (Changes in Health Care Financing & Organization)
[Guidance Overview] ERISA Plan's Prior Authorization and Plan Limits Requirements Preempt State Medicaid Demands for Payment If Procedures Not Followed
Excerpt: "Employer health plans that require prior authorization or impose plan limits on certain types of care need not repay State Medicaid plans when those state plans pay for Medicaid recipients' treatments that the employer plan would not have paid unless the plan participant had received prior authorization under the employer plan. But this rule applies only if the plan participant first files the claim with the employer health plan and receives the employer plan's denial of payment, according to U.S. Department of Labor Advisory Opinion 2008-03A, March 31, 2008." (Deloitte via BenefitsLink.com)
McCain Says Affluent Seniors Should Pay More for Medicare Drug Benefit
Excerpt: "Sen. John McCain will propose today that affluent seniors pay more for government-provided drug benefits as a way to control health-care spending . . . ." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
Boomers to Flood Medical System, According to Study
Excerpt: "The report from the [Institute of Medicine], an arm of the National Academy of Sciences, said: --There aren't enough specialists in geriatric medicine. --Insufficient training is available. --The specialists that do exist are underpaid. --Medicare fails to provide for team care that many elderly patients need." (AP via The New York Times; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] Plans Required to Reimburse Medicaid Even if Participant Failed to Obtain Required Preauthorization for Services
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: This opinion builds on Advisory Opinion 2005-05A, in which the DOL concluded that ERISA does not preempt state laws that authorize states to recoup Medicaid payments from a plan if the plan would have been liable to any third party before the Medicaid payment was made . . . . According to that advisory opinion, such state laws may be enforced 'notwithstanding the plan's procedural requirements governing participant benefit claims' (for instance, Medicaid does not have to comply with the plan's filing time limits)." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
Medigap: What You Need to Know (PDF)
12 pages. Excerpt: "This policy brief presents a snapshot of private Medicare Supplement (Medigap) insurance in 2008. Changes in Medigap products and expanded Medicare private plan options established by the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 (MMA) became effective January 1, 2006. While most of the traditional standard Medigap products are unchanged, in conjunction with making the new Medicare (Part D) prescription drug benefits available, the MMA prohibited the inclusion of prescription drug benefits in any newly-issued Medigap policy. In addition, two new higher cost-sharing Medigap products authorized by the MMA (Plans K and L) became available in 2006." (America's Health Insurance Plans)
Trends in Medigap Policies, December 2004 to December 2006 (PDF)
7 pages. Excerpt: "This paper presents findings from an analysis conducted by America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) on enrollment trends in Medicare Supplement (Medigap) insurance coverage, using year-end data for 2004 through 2006 from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The NAIC dataset contains information on most Medigap policies in force in the U.S.,1 representing approximately 10 million covered lives with policies from nearly 250 carriers." (America’s Health Insurance Plans)
The Effect of Medicare Part D on Pharmaceutical Prices and Utilization
Excerpt: "This paper evaluates the effect of this program on the price and utilization of pharmaceutical treatments. Theoretically, it is ambiguous whether the expansion in insurance coverage would increase or reduce pharmaceutical prices. Insurance-induced reductions in demand elasticities would predict an increase in pharmaceutical firms' optimal prices. However, Part D plans could potentially negotiate price discounts through their ability to influence the market share of specific treatments. Using data on product-specific prices and quantities sold in each year in the U.S., our findings indicate that Part D substantially lowered the average price and increased the total utilization of prescription drugs by Medicare recipients. Our results further suggest that the magnitude of these average effects varies across drugs as predicted by economic theory." (National Bureau of Economic Research; paid subscription or individual purchase required to retrieve fulltext)
Medicare Finds How Hard It Is to Save Money
Excerpt: "An ambitious three-year experiment to see whether the Medicare system could prevent expensive hospital visits for people with chronic conditions like congestive heart failure and diabetes has suggested that such an approach may cost more than it saves." (The New York Times; free registration required)
CMS Issues Final Rule on Electronic-Prescribing Standards Under Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit
Excerpt: "The rule establishes standards for the electronic transmission of information of the medications covered under the Medicare prescription drug plans of beneficiaries and the availability of generic versions of those treatments. The standards allow physicians and other health care providers, as well as pharmacies and Medicare prescription drug plan sponsors, to share information about medications taken by beneficiaries. In addition, the standards allow pharmacies to inform physicians and other providers when patients obtain their prescriptions. The rule does not require physicians, pharmacies and other providers to adopt e-prescribing to participate in Medicare." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Medicare Part D 2008 Data Spotlight: Ten Most Common Brand-Name Drugs (PDF)
2 pages. Excerpt: "This Medicare Part D Data Spotlight examines the variation in coverage, cost sharing and utilization management tools for the 10 prescriptions most commonly used by Medicare beneficiaries, including treatments for cholesterol, cardiovascular health, osteoporosis, dementia, gastrointestinal reflux and ulcers." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Medicare Prescription Drug Plans in 2008 and Key Changes Since 2006: Summary of Findings (PDF)
7 pages. Excerpt: "This synthesis of key findings from analysis presented in a series of eight Medicare Part D 2008 Data Spotlights describes key features of stand-alone prescription drug plans offered in 2008 and trends since 2006. The synthesis covers a range of topics, including premiums, the coverage gap, benefit design, cost sharing, specialty tiers, formularies, utilization management, the top 10 brand-name prescription drugs, and the availability of low-income subsidy plans." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Congress in no rush to fix Medicare and Social Security
Excerpt: "Lawmakers are preparing to get serious about the long-term solvency of America's Social Security and Medicare programs – but not until the next Congress convenes. The latest annual report on the prospects for Social Security and Medicare projects a $42.9 trillion shortfall over the next 75 years, at current levels of benefits and taxation. The message Congress is taking away from the report is that there's still time to build bipartisan consensus for reform." (The Christian Science Monitor)
[Guidance Overview] Coordinating Retiree Health Benefits with Medicare (PDF)
2 pages. (Milliman)
[Official Guidance] DOL Advisory Opinion 2008-03A on ERISA Preemption
Excerpt: "Whether ERISA would preempt an action by a State Medicaid Agency to recover Medicaid benefit payments made on behalf of individuals who are also participants in ERISA-covered private health insurance plans that require prior authorization for covered health care items or services." (U.S. Employee Benefits Security Administration)
Congress Considers Medicare Legislation
Excerpt: "Medicare and Medicaid legislation has seen considerable debate this legislative session. The Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007 (S. 2499) delayed scheduled cuts in physician reimbursements for six months, reauthorized the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) for 18 months and required employer-provided health plans to provide enrollment data to the secretary of Health and Human Services . . . ." (Watson Wyatt Worldwide)
[Guidance Overview] U. S. Supreme Court Affirms EEOC Medicare Coordination Ruling
Excerpt: "In a closely watched case, the United States Supreme Court has refused the AARP's request for review of the Third Circuit Court of Appeals' decision in AARP v. EEOC, thereby affirming the EEOC's ability to exempt from the age discrimination statutes the coordination of retiree health benefits with Medicare. This ruling clears the way for employers to design retiree health benefit plans that feature coordination of these benefits." (Littler Mendelson P.C.)
[Opinion] Social Security - Still Alive and Kicking
Excerpt: "This year, as happens every year, when the Trustees' Report on Social Security and Medicare is released, commentators seized on the forecasts to proclaim imminent disaster and called for privatization of Social Security. In fact, the official forecasts, released yesterday, differ only marginally from those of 2007. The report underlines that we need to solve problems in these safety net programs. But there is no imminent Social Security crisis; in fact, the outlook is marginally better than it was a year ago." (Bernard Wasow via takingnote.tcf.org)
[Guidance Overview] CMS Extends Certain Deadlines for Completing Retiree Drug Subsidy Reconciliations
Excerpt: "Plan sponsors will get additional time to complete their Retiree Drug Subsidy (RDS) reconciliation1 under a deadline extension announced by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on Monday, March 24, 2008.2 The extension applies to plan sponsors with RDS applications for plan years ending in either 2006 or the first quarter of 2007. It provides welcome relief for plan sponsors that have been scrambling to complete the reconciliation. In many cases, plan sponsors had not yet received information from their pharmacy benefit managers (PBM) needed to complete the reconciliation." (The Segal Group, Inc.)
Outlook Remains Bleak for Two U.S. Social Insurance Programs
Excerpt: "The Bush administration issued a grim report [yesterday] on the financial outlook for Medicare and Social Security, but said the condition of the programs had not significantly deteriorated since last spring." (The New York Times; free registration required)
Status of the Social Security and Medicare Programs - A Summary of the 2008 Annual Reports
Excerpt: "The financial difficulties facing Social Security and Medicare pose enormous challenges. The sooner these challenges are addressed, the more varied and less disruptive their solutions can be. We urge the public to engage in informed discussion and policymakers to think creatively about the changing needs and preferences of working and retired Americans. A national conversation and timely political action are essential to ensure that Social Security and Medicare continue to play a critical role in the lives of all Americans." (Social Security and Medicare Boards of Trustees)
2008 Annual Report of the Boards of Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance and Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds (PDF)
242 pages. Excerpt: "The Boards of Trustees issued their most recent report on March 25, 2008. The Trustees Report is a detailed, lengthy document, containing a substantial amount of information on the past and estimated future financial operations of the Hospital Insurance and Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds . . . . We recommend that readers begin with the 'Overview' section of the report. This section is fairly short, is written in 'plain English,' and summarizes all the key information concerning the expected financial outlook for Medicare. Substantial additional material is available in the later sections for those wishing to delve more deeply into the actuarial projections." (Boards of Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance and Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Funds)
Supreme Court Allows Retiree Benefit Cuts
Excerpt: "The Supreme Court on Monday gave employers a green light to reduce health benefits for millions of retirees who turn 65 and become eligible for Medicare. The justices turned away a legal challenge from AARP, the nation's leading senior citizens lobby, which had contended these lower benefits for older retirees violated the federal law against age discrimination. The court's action upholds, in effect, a rule adopted last year by federal regulators that says the 'coordination of retiree health benefits with Medicare' is exempt from the anti-age-bias law." (Los Angeles Times)
Annual Social Security and Medicare Reports to Be Released Today
Excerpt: "Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson will be joined by members of the Social Security and Medicare boards of trustees for a news conference to discuss the release of the annual Social Security and Medicare trustees' reports at 2 p.m. EDT Tuesday, March 25." (Modern Healthcare; free registration required)
Transitioning to Medicare Before Age Sixty-Five
Excerpt: "Disabled workers who start receiving Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) must wait twenty-four months to qualify for Medicare. Legislation introduced in Congress would eliminate this waiting period, to guarantee that people with disabilities severe enough to qualify for SSDI will not be uninsured. We provide a longitudinal view of Medicare enrollment before age sixty-five by following a national sample of people ages 55-64. One person in six was covered by Medicare before turning sixty-five. A quarter of new enrollees were uninsured during the waiting period. There were great disparities in reliance on Medicare and coverage in the waiting period." (Health Affairs)
Medicare Out-of-Pocket Costs: Can Private Savings Incentives Solve the Problem?
Excerpt: "This report analyzes the extent to which incentives to save could offer significant relief of post-retirement healthcare costs. We analyze this with a particular focus on low-income participants as part of a broader analysis of families of varying income levels. We include projections of savings potential for individuals of varying income levels if they could save a modest percentage of their income tax free and receive a rate of return equivalent to that in a basket of U.S. Treasury bonds." (The Commonwealth Fund)
Social Security Trustees to Give Annual Update
Excerpt: "The trustees of Social Security and Medicare are certain to kick off a fierce round of debate when they release their annual assessment of the fiscal health of the government's two biggest benefit programs. . . . The new report is expected to make only small changes in the estimates made last year for when both trust funds will be depleted." (The Washington Post; free registration required)
High Court Decision Paves Way for Two-Tiered Retiree Medical Benefits
Excerpt: "As expected, the U.S. Supreme Court Monday declined to review a federal appeals court ruling that effectively upholds employers' ability to reduce health care benefits when retirees become eligible for Medicare, putting a final end to nearly eight years of litigation and uncertainty." (Financial Week; free registration required)
High Court Declines AARP Appeal on Retiree Health Benefits
Excerpt: "The Supreme Court [today] let stand a federal policy that allows employers to reduce their health insurance expenses for retired workers once they turn 65 and qualify for Medicare." (AP via The New York Times; free registration required)
[Guidance Overview] Actuarial Equivalence for Prescription Drug Plans and Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug Plans under the Medicare Drug Program (PDF)
Excerpt: "The purpose of this practice note is to provide guidance to the actuary certifying to the actuarial equivalence of a PDP or a MA-PD under the requirements of 42 CFR 423.265 and is based on interpretations of 42 CFR 423.265 and current CMS guidelines and requirements." (American Academy of Actuaries)
Supreme Court to Discuss EEOC Retiree Health Plan Exemption
Excerpt: "The U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled a discussion for Friday, March 21, on whether it will review a federal appeals court ruling that effectively allows employers to reduce health care benefits when retirees become eligible for Medicare without facing age discrimination charges." (Workforce Management; free registration required)
Drug Lobby Successfully Preventing Democratic Legislation to Reimport Drugs, Negotiate Prices for Medicare Drug Benefit
Excerpt: "The pharmaceutical lobby has 'increasingly worked itself into the good graces of the Democratic Party' and in doing so has helped block Democrats from passing a measure permitting Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices and legislation allowing drug reimportation from Canada, the Washington Post reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Trends in Manufacturer Prices of Brand Name Prescription Drugs Used by Medicare Beneficiaries—2002-2007
Excerpt: "Specifically, the reports compare price changes with the rate of inflation. They also present differences in average price changes by manufacturer and by major therapeutic category. The sample of drugs studied was identified using 2006 data from a Medicare Part D plan provider, and changes in prices charged by drug manufacturers to wholesalers were measured using changes in the wholesale acquisition cost (WAC)." (AARP)
[Guidance Overview] Final MSP Regulations Regarding Primary Liability of Employers and Insurers
Excerpt: "EBIA Comment: Group health plans and others subject to the MSP rules will likely be relieved that the changes are minimal and made largely by way of clarification. (Other MSP requirements loom on the horizon that will likely consume more time and effort . . . .) We note that the changes in the regulations were made in response to public comments, and the guidance contains detailed responses to other comments that are worth reading for additional insights into the MSP rules." (Employee Benefits Institute of America)
Humana Offers Members Gift Cards for Participating in Health Practices
Excerpt: "Humana last month launched a program, called 'Healthy Returns,' that provides its Medicare plan beneficiaries with gift cards to Macy's, CVS, Lowe's and Borders as an incentive to adopt healthier lifestyles, Florida Health News reports." (Kaiser Family Foundation)
Boomers Confused on Retiree Health Options
Excerpt: "A news release from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) about its survey of 377 Baby Boomers found that 36% correctly knew that Medicare eligibility begins at age 65. Twenty-one percent thought Medicare coverage began at age 62; 9% said age 67; 6% said age 59˝; and 28% said they were not sure." (PLANSPONSOR.com; free registration required)
[Opinion] Ill-Advised 2003 Law Prevents Consideration of Some of Best and Fairest Ways to Begin Fixing Medicare
Excerpt: "The administration has made no effort to reduce the lavish and unjustified subsidies granted to the private health plans that participate in Medicare. Eliminating them could save Medicare far more general revenue money than reducing drug-program subsidies would." (The New York Times; free registration required)
[Opinion] How Baby Boomers Are Changing Work and Retirement
Excerpt: "The media report that you, the first wave of the giant cohort eligible for Social Security's early retirement benefits, may also be the first wave of economic fatalities as the Social Security and Medicare cupboards start getting bare. But there is cause for celebration and optimism. Baby boomers have changed the nature of work, why not the nature of retirement?" (The San Diego Union-Tribune)
[Guidance Overview] EEOC Issues Final Rule on Retiree Health Benefits Exemption - Regulation Reverses Decision in Erie County Case
Excerpt: "This final rule comes after years of debate on the issue of retiree health benefits sparked by the Third Circuit's 2000 decision in Erie County Retirees Association v. County of Erie ('Erie County'). The implementation of the final rule will have an impact on millions of retirees and employers." (Blank Rome LLP)
Medicare Part D: Plan Sponsors' Processing and CMS Monitoring of Drug Coverage Requests Could Be Improved (PDF)
47 pages. Excerpt: "GAO recommends that CMS (1) reduce the need for an AOR form by requiring that sponsors and the IRE, upon receipt of standard appeal requests submitted by prescribing physicians without AOR forms, telephone beneficiaries to see if they wish to initiate the appeal, and (2) provide specific definitions for data that sponsors must report to CMS. The agency supports the intent of our first recommendation and is considering it in light of current legal requirements. CMS has taken steps to implement the second recommendation." (U.S. Government Accountability Office)
Medicare Drug Benefit Complicates Coverage for the Unwary
Excerpt: "[The] troubles were triggered by a controversial provision under a federal Medicare program that in 2006 gave seniors and others prescription-drug benefits for the first time. Among the new beneficiaries were more than 6 million Americans who . . . were covered by both Medicaid and Medicare. Such 'dual eligibles' already had good drug coverage through Medicaid. But the federal government required them to switch to one of the Part D plans sold by commercial insurers -- or to be assigned to one randomly." (The Seattle Times)
Gaps in Data Slow Retiree Prescription Subsidies
Excerpt: "Because of administrative snafus, some employers that have applied for the Medicare Retiree Drug Subsidy are now scrambling to meet a March 31 deadline for final reconciliation. If they are unable to confirm eligibility of all of their plan members, they will not be paid for them . . . ." (Workforce.com)
[Opinion] On Healthcare, Obama In Actuality Offers No 'Hope', No 'Change' for the Young
Excerpt: "Throughout their primary campaign, Democratic candidates generally ignored the coming senior-entitlements train wreck -- save for Barack Obama. He advocates the traditional liberal policy of resolving shortfalls by increasing taxes -- in this case, by eliminating Social Security's payroll-tax cap. . . . By voting for Obama, a 22-year-old young college graduate earning $40,000 per year today would be opting to surrender an additional 4 percent of his lifetime earnings to the Social Security administration -- and may get no benefits in return." (Jagadeesh Gokhale and John Samples, published by the Cato Institute)
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